I was on the Level 2 course last week in Bookham. I had been half dreading it as I knew I was feeling overwhelmed. I felt like a helium balloon floating up in a sympathetic state of chaos with no idea how to get back down to the ground.
Obviously Douglas spotted this immediately. It is quite scary, and makes you feel very vulnerable knowing that someone has a measure of you after only knowing you very briefly, even if they are a Jedi. Luckily I think Douglas also gets this, and knew he had to be gentle with me.
Anyway after the first day I felt amazing; taller, stronger, I had more clarity of vision…Generally amazing. My journey home that night took an hour, but it felt like ten minutes.
After day two of the course and on my way home to Spain, I was trying the breathing I had learned, and I couldn’t take a deep breath with out crying. What a huge amount of tension and stress a body can hold! I literally cried for about 4 hours with every deep breath. In the car, in the elevator, on the escalator, on the plane and then the bus – every form of transportation available to me.
But then on Saturday I felt calm again, like I was back in control. Everything was good. At that time I thought I would never feel stressed again, but I have now realised that this is impossible. The key is how much it affects you after, and if you can calm down afterwards.
I have been telling everyone about breathing ever since, evangelising almost. It was like Doug designed the whole course entirely for me!
It is amazing to go on an ostensibly physiotherapy course and discover its really about response to stress, and that I now have the tools to help manage and understand it.
Anyway, I can’t say what a huge impact this course has had on me and will continue to have on me. Immense.
Many many thanks to you Douglas,
Lucy
Photo credit: ‘Bloos’ by Celine Nadeau
